Moments
by alpha-range
Summary: Maximum Ride drabble-style prompts. Short. Mostly Fax; some focused on flock characters, not all Max and Fang.    R&R?    T just in case. *Usually updated in groups of five.*
1. Together

**#01: Together**

"Max? This isn't natural." Nudge said, sliding into the chair next to Max on the elder girl's bedroom balcony; the flock's leader gave her sister a bitter smile.

"What d'you mean, Nudge?" She asked, and Nudge could see the tired look to her eyes.

"This whole thing." The young african-america-avian muttered. "Fang being with Lissa, you being with Sam. It's not supposed to be like this. It's supposed to be you and Fang, together forever."

"I think you've been reading too many fairytales." Max remarked dryly, casting her eyes back to where her raptor eyes could pick out Fang and Lissa laughing together by the lake. She wasn't sure why she was torturing herself like this, sitting here and watching them, hating every moment of it, but she couldn't bring herself to leave. "And I'm not with Sam. I broke up with him after that first date."

"So go talk to Fang!" Nudge cried. "Tell him that it's over with Sam, and-"

"And what, Nudge? Have him rub the fact that I can't get a simple relationship to work, whilst him and Lissa are so happy together, in my face? No thanks." Max's tone was bitter, and Nudge was slightly scared at the hollow, hopeless look in her leaders eyes.

"That wouldn't happen." She said, trying desperately to make Max smile, or _something_. "Fang wouldn't do that to you for starters, and they're _not_ happy together. Fang's happy when he's with you, not with that bimbo red-head. You _both_ deserve to be happy."

Max raised an eyebrow at Nudge's choice of words, noting that she was usually a pacifist.

"They look happy to me." Max said gently, finally allowing a small smile. "Besides, as long as Fang's happy, I'm happy."

Nudge was finally fed up. "Liar." She shot at her leader, standing and leaving, heading downstairs. She'd wait until Lissa had gone, and then she'd talk to Fang, make him see how unhappy Max was.

Somehow, it had fallen on her shoulders to fix them.

_[Words: 337]_


	2. Mirror

**#02: Mirror**

Fang frowned as he watched Max playing with the kids. Her face was happy and laughing, but her eyes showed a completely different story - scarily empty and sad.

It was strange, in a way, that everyone said that he was the emotionless one. Sure, he was the master of the mask, he could control his face better than anyone that he knew. He didn't smile much, only occasionally frowned, and never cried; but that didn't make him emotionless. It just made him good at hiding his emotions.

He felt them all, after all.

He felt all of them: happiness, joy, sadness, guilt, frustration, fear, love…

The list went on.

In Fang's opinion, the most emotionless one of them all was Max.

It seemed a bizarre thought at first, and Fang had almost dismissed it, and then he'd looked a little closer. Sure, she laughed, and she grinned and she frowned; but she was only going through the motions. When he looked closer, Fang could see what he'd failed to notice before.

It was like she was holding a mirror up to the world; like one of the ones from a carnival that were slightly bent.

The people around her, such as the flock, gave out an emotion, and she reflected it back - a little distorted. For example, when the flock were worried, she would frown; like the mirror that she was holding up had changed the emotion a little, and then reflected it back.

The only place that the real her could be viewed was in her eyes, where she was the scared little girl that Fang could remember from when he was four years old. Max herself hadn't changed, she'd just covered herself.

And Fang knew that one day, her mirror was going to crack.

What happened then was anyone's guess.

_[Words: 306]_


	3. Present

**#03: Present**

Christmas. It was the season that the flock had never properly enjoyed until now, and they were making the most of it. They'd gone to town decorating Dr M's house, wings making all of the usually hard-to-reach places more excessible than ever. Banners, paper snowflakes and tinsel was everywhere, and Max had to admit that it was one of the best sights that she'd ever seen.

The mass present-opening session meant that wrapping paper covered the floor, not yet picked up, and the fire was roaring in the fireplace. It was more than Max could have ever dreamed of, and she was enjoying every moment of it.

The money left over from Itez meant that money hadn't been an obsticle, which she was glad about, since it meant that The Flock now had everything that they needed to feel at home, and more. TVs, games consoles, DVDs, CDs and players for both. Art prints and posters for their walls, little nick-nacks for shelves.

Dr M and Max had ensured that they'd thought of everything for the up and coming move, so that when the Flock moved into their own bedrooms, they could be everything that they could have ever dreampt of.

Max's favourite present had predictably come from Fang, the guy who knew her better than herself. It was a small, silver camera; nothing too flashy, but with a memory big enough for Max's obsession with capturing every moment of the Flock's new life together.

She had to admit that it wasn't the camera itself that had made her day, although she had loved it, it was the first picture that she'd taken with it. The one that she was going to get framed, and hang pride of place in her bedroom.

She'd set it on timer, and the Flock had assembled themselves in front of the tree just before the flash. It was one of the best pictures that Max had ever seen, simply because everyone was so happy. They were all - including Fang - grinning like maniacs, wearing the small paper hats from inside of their Christmas crackers.

Max was sure that every time she saw it, she'd be unable to do anything but smile.

_[Words: 370]_


	4. Nervous

**#04: Nervous**

"School tomorrow." Fang said gently, flopping on the bed next to Max, who glanced up from the brochure for the aforementioned school, startled. She nodded, holding his gaze for a long moment, before turning back to the brochure and turning the page, brown eyes scanning the page with mild interest.

"You nervous?" He asked after a long pause, and she grinned a little.

"I've battled hundreds of erasers and deranged scientists, spent most of my life on the run, faced off against my father and my brother _and_ practically raised three kids." She scoffed, and Fang raised an eyebrow. Her grin widened. "I'm terrified."

Fang laughed at that, rolling onto his front to match her and resting his head on his arms, head turned to the side to study her as she turned her attention back to the leaflet.

"It sounds crazy, when you put it like that." He commented lazily, watching her for her reaction.

"I don't think so." She said eventually, turning to face him again. "I mean all the other stuff, that's normal for us. School? It's something completely different; school for us is like normal humans swimming with sharks."

Fang's eyebrows raised. "People do that?"

Max shrugged, rolling her eyes. "It was just an example, Fang."

"I know. You sound like you've given it a lot of thought."

She shrugged. "I occasionally do that; think. And I have, I couldn't sleep last night so I gave myself a motivational prep talk."

"For high school?"

"Swimming with sharks, remember?"

_[Words: 254]_


	5. Father

**#05: Father**

"Max?" Mom called up the stairs. "Jeb's here."

The mutant in question frowned, rolling out of bed and glaning blearily at the clock. 06:00 AM.

"Wha's goin' on?" Fang mummbled, propping himself semi-upright on the bed and rubbing his face; Max couldn't help but grin as she watched him, sometimes - when he didn't have his mask up - he was adorable.

"Jeb's here." She whispered back, slipping her feet into her slippers and stretching for a long moment before heading down stairs, dimly aware that Fang was only a few steps behind her, hair still tussled from sleep.

Jeb was sat in the lounge, making it easy for him to watch Max and Fang descend the stairs together with a frown. Dr Martinez didn't seem too concerned about the fact that they'd so obviously been sharing a room, but that didn't mean that Jeb had to like it. Max was his daughter, after all.

"Were you two in the same room?" He asked, disbelief and annoyance evident in his tone. Max's eyes flared with anger and a similar annoyance.

"Yes, actually. Not that it's any of your business what Fang and I do."

"Excuse me? I am your _dad_, young lady-"

Max cut him off, frowning. "Keep your voice down, the kids are sleeping. As for your _claim_, I beg to differ. You're not my dad; I don't have one."

Jeb blinked, and Fang and Dr M regarded Max carefully. It appeared that she'd finally made her mind up about where she lay with Jeb, and neither of them could quite understand where she was taking this. Was she in denial or something?

"That's ridiculous, Max. _Everyone_ has a father."

Max nodded. "Of course everyone has a father. You're mine, biologically speaking, but that doesn't make you my _dad_. A _dad_ wouldn't gain their child's trust and then hand them over to sick scientists who want to torture them, or, now that I think of it, torture them themselves. There's a big difference."

"You're being ridiculous-"

"No," Max interrupted, nodding to the front door. "For the first time in my life, I'm doing something for myself. The _smart_ thing for myself, now, do you think you could do us all a favour and get lost? I don't really want to see you right now. Or, you know, _ever_…"

Jeb blinked again, seemingly finding himself standing without a consciouss command on his brain's behalf to do so. Numbly, and still blinking comically, he saw himself out; leaving a still simmering Max, and her confused mother and boyfriend, behind.

"You okay?" Fang asked quietly from his position at the bottom of the stairs. Max flashed him a grin that seemed strangely real.

"Brilliant. Much better. I took way too long to do that."

_[Words: 464]_


	6. Somebody Else

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#06: Somebody [Else]

"Max?" Fang whispered, glancing around the room to find that she must have left at some point during the night. Sighing to himself at Max's insane sleeping habits [or lack thereof] he regretfully climbed out of the bed and grabbed a shirt on the way out, slipping it over his head as he padded silently downstairs.

The familiar whir of the coffee machine told him that his girlfriend was in the kitchen, and he headed forward, finding her sat cross-legged on the far edge of the island, a cup of coffee in her hands, and her eyes trained on the garden out of the kitchen window.

"Max?" He asked again, coming forward. She didn't respond, and he noted the tight set of her shoulders before moving round to stand in front of her, staring up into her tear-stained face.

"Baby, what's going on?" He asked, gently wiping her face. She shook her head as more tears washed down her face, and lent forwards to wrap her arms around his neck, burying her face in his shoulder and uncrossing her legs.

"Come on, sweetie, what's wrong?" He whispered into her ear, one hand soothingly rubbing the spot between her wings, and the other running through her hair. She shook her head again, but then opened her mouth to speak, turning her head a little away from his own.

"I don't want to do this anymore, Fang. I don't want to have to pack up my bags and leave here again tomorrow. I want to be somebody. Somebody normal. Somebody _else_."

"Hey," He whispered into her ear soothingly, his arms tightening a little around her. "Its alright, we don't have to leave. We can just stay here; no running, no moving. Nothing. Just the eight of us. Well, eleven, if you include the dogs." She nodded into his shoulder, before pulling away after a long moment.

"I'm sorry."

She muttered, wiping her face on her hoodie sleeve and sniffling a little. Frowning, Fang pulled her hand away from her face and kissed her gently.

"You don't ever have to apologize to me, alright? This is what I'm here for."


	7. Salvage

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#07: Salvage

All that was left was the basic outline of a house; parts of walls, no roof, and little else. Ashes and the burnt remains of furniture highlighted everything that Max had committed to memory over the years.

The sofa that had started out crème, before little Angel had taken it upon herself to decorate it with a red felt-pen and some glitter glue. Max and Fang had desperately scrubbed at it for hours, but no matter what they'd done, red love hearts and stars had become a permanent addition; as had the glitter.

The kitchen island where her family had eaten their meals, every day, for four years. The charred photo album, containing the best moments in Max's life: the kids' first flying lesson, the first time that they'd ever seen the snow, or skated on a frozen lake. All of the moments that had made ten years of torture worthwhile.

The only thing that appeared to be untouched was a small, metal box. The only salvageable thing from their entire house, and it was the one thing that Max would have almost enjoyed to see burn. Slowly, aware of the lump forming in her throat and Fang's careful eyes on her back, she walked forwards.

Finally leveling with the box, she slowly knelt in the ashes, wiping the blackness from the top of the box until she was staring at the little combination lock. The numbers had come off in the fire, but it didn't matter, Max could have twisted the combination blindfolded, and having been spun around in circles for an hour.

The numbers themselves were easy to remember, "21052003". The 21st of March, 2003: the day that they'd been freed from The School.

After a moment's hesitation, the lock clicked open and a single tear fell from Max's eye as she pulled the box open and began to remove its contents. The experimentation tags that they'd worn around their necks at The School, the robes that they'd escaped in and the hospital-type bracelets from around their wrists.

Jeb had told her that she should get rid of them, but despite everything that they'd represented, she'd never been able to bring herself to; finally, Jeb had brought her the box. A little mini safe, so that even though she couldn't destroy them completely, she could lock them away.

And now they were the only things that were salvageable.

Irony at its worst.

************************

"I thought that you burnt them when we first got here." Fang muttered, coming to sit next to her, placing a hand on her knee as she stared at the items spread in the ashes before her; suddenly glad that only the two of them had come.

"I tried to, a few times." She whispered back, shrugging and turning to look at him before turning back. "I could never do it."

She shrugged again, finding herself embarrassed by the confession.

"How about now?" Fang asked, moving them all to a pile and pulling out what appeared to be a modified lighter. Max recognised it as one of Iggy and The Gasman's inventions, a lighter turned flamethrower, and despite everything, she found herself hesitating.

Fang watched her carefully before scooping her into his lap and wrapping his arms around her securely; for a long moment, the two of them just sat there, and then Max found herself nodding slowly.

Fang smiled a little at her, gently, and then leant over to set fire to the small pile of items on the ashen ground. In a matter of seconds their remains were falling to the ground, mixing in with the ashes already on the floor - there was no way of setting them apart from what had once been their house.

Max watched them go with a frown, surprised to note that there was no lightening, or weightening, in her heart.

"I thought that would change things a bit more," She laughed a little, leaning back on Fang and scuffing her foot through the ash. "I guess that was pretty silly, huh? They're just _things_. Not memories, or people… Just things."

Fang nodded slowly. "And now they're nothing but memories; just like The School."************************


	8. Library

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#08: Library

Max frowned a little as she looked up at the large building before her, the words

_"New York City Public library"_ engraved on the front, before turning her head to the side a little.

"Do you remember when we were last here?" She asked the dark mutant that stood there. He rubbed her shoulder gently, nodding.

"When we were looking for the institute."

It wasn't a question, but Max nodded. "When we were looking for some way to be free of everything, to be happy. And now we're here looking for a way to be thrust back into a normal life, chained by the restraints of it. Ironic."

Fang frowned a little at her choice of words, but it came to no surprise to him that despite how she might act around the others, she was a little more than bitter and upset at the situation.

"It won't be that bad," Fang said gently. "We can still meet up when the Flock are living with their parents; we can go on flights and camping trips at the weekends and stuff. Besides, you'll still have me. We'll be free."

Max sighed, "What good is freedom if there's no-one to share it with?"


	9. Alaska

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#09: Alaska

"First Antarctica, and now _Alaska_." Nudge sighed loudly. "Can't the world need saving from somewhere warm? Somewhere without penguins?"

Bridget frowned. "Actually, Nudge, penguins are known to be found in warm climates. Australia, the Galapagos Islands, Argentina… have you never heard of the African black-footed penguin?"

Nudge and I exchanged an exasperated look. "She's never been to school. Of _course_ she's never heard of the 'African blue-footed penguin' or whatever."

Bridget groaned. "It's a _black_-footed-"

"I don't care what color its feet are," I snapped, losing my patience; much to Fang's amusement. "It's a penguin that lives in Africa, which means its not _here_. That's all I care about."

Bridget huffed, grabbing Fang's arm and steeing him enthusiastically to study what looked like a piece of grass sticking out from beneath the snow, and mummbling something about "penguins", "Stupid" and "pain in the butt". I grinned a little to myself, and Nudge snapped me a sneaky high-five as the two of us concentrated on herding Angel and The Gasman forward.

"Max," Angel said sweetly, slipping her hand into mine and peering up at me from beneath her wooly pink hat. "Did you know that you're not supposed to eat yellow snow? My teacher told me, back in Virginia."

"Is that so?" I asked, laughing a little. "I'll have to bear that in mind. Right, since this is the only building that I have yet to see, I'm assuming that this is the place. Go on in."

I turned, sighing when I found that Dr Amazing and Fang were still peering at whatever the hell it was. "Oi! Fang, Dr A- Bridget, you're more than welcome to keep studying that same piece of grass, but we're heading in."

Fang glanced up and grinned at me, causing my heart to do a quick backflip, quickly heading inside as Bridget followed.

"It's not a piece of grass," She informed me as she passed. "it's a budding Monkshood, it's strange to find one so late in the season…"

I groaned, letting the door slam shut after me as I headed inside, and came face-to-face with row after row of beautiful dogs.

"What the-"

"Max!" Nudge squaled, bounding up to me. "This is how we're going to be getting around here. They're huskies, and malamutes, and… oh, what was it? Oh, yeah, _Samoyeds_. Aren't they fantastic? I _love_ Alaska."

I raised an eyebrow at her, but said nothing, shaking my head and following her towards the dogs.

Sometimes I really don't know what to make of that girl.


	10. Plough

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#10: Plough

"You're going to freeze to death," Fang remarked dryly from the glass doors leading out on to the hotel balcony. I shrugged, and Fang sighed, stepping forwards and placing his jacket over my shoulders. "What's up?"

"The plough." Fang gave me a strange look, and I allowed a small laugh, pointing to the constellation. "It's my favourite constellation."

"Oh," Fang said, frowning in confusion. "Why?"

"Because it's always there. We've been so many places, gone through so much, and The Plough has been the one constellation that I've always been able to see - no matter where I am." I shrugged, leaning forwards as Fang stood a little more upright next to me, regarding the collection of stars carefully.

After a while, he nodded slowly. "That's kind of…"

"Sad? Cheesy? Odd?" I reeled off, laughing a little.

Fang mock glared at me. "I was going to say cool," He shrugged. "But I'm pretty sure that all of them work."

I punches his shoulder, before allowing myself to be wrapped up in his arms. For a while the two of us simply stood and watched the stars, before I blushed a little.

"Fang, I hate to ruin the moment or whatever, but it really is kinda cold…"


End file.
